NAISA Sound Byte 15 - Rani Jambak performing on the Kincia Aia
live electronic music performance derived from an Indonesian Water Wheel
Today’s NAISA Sound Byte features a video of a recent performance by Rani Jambak. The performance was recorded on September 20, 2025 during NAISA’s SOUNDplay Festival in South River, Ontario, Canada.
Sitting on the table next to Jambak is a miniature water wheel, made of wood and powered by a motor. Modeled after the Kincia Aia, a traditional water wheel from Minangkabau, West Sumatra, this miniature version includes 10 pestles that manually trigger layers of live sound and pre-recorded samples - some of which include field recordings from Minangkabau.
In her notes for the performance, Rani Jambak says that it is rare these days to still see the traditional waterwheel in Minangkabau, because of new technology and the fact that climate change in the area has resulted in insufficient current in the springs and rivers. She designed her instrument to connect to the ancestral wisdom and creativity of her parents’ birthplace and to raise awareness about the current climate conditions.
Her focus is to re-interpret in musical form Minangkabau philosophy and ancestral knowledge. Starting from learning the culture and history through its sounds, to creating instruments like the Kincia Aia, and from understanding history through Tambo Alam Minangkabau, a manuscript about the origin of Minangkabau from the early 19th century.
The previous NAISA Sound Byte featured a radio conversation between Rani Jambak and VenusFest director apè aliermo, which delves further into Jambak’s journey and life story. NAISA is grateful to VenusFest for organizing the tour that brought Rani Jambak to Canada in September 2025.
New Adventures in Sound Art (NAISA) is a non-profit sound-based media arts organization near to Algonquin Park. NAISA presents sound sculptures, transmission art, electroacoustic music, videomusic, new art, and the art of sound, through performances, exhibitions, broadcasts, and the annual festivals Sound Travels, Deep Wireless, SOUNDplay and the annual series Springscapes. Operating since 2001, NAISA is partially funded by The Ontario Arts Council, The Canada Council for the Arts, and The Department of Canadian Heritage. To Support NAISA make a contribution on our donation page.